The Collegiate War Against Merit
A story in Inside Higher Ed last week revealed that two more Ivy League schools, Cornell and the University of Pennsylvania, have stopped publishing “dean’s lists” that recognize high levels…
Articles by Richard K. Vedder
The Real World Confronts the Ivory Tower
For years, there has been an ever-widening gap between the values and behaviors of contemporary America (“the Real World”) and those on college campuses (“the Ivory Tower”). Since, ultimately, the…
The Ne Plus Ultra of Collegiate Wokeness
Observers of the American collegiate scene are likely well aware of the academic jihad against University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax and the disgraceful shouting down of federal judge…
Does College Accreditation Work?
When you buy a car, a piece of furniture, or a pleasure boat, you typically don’t ask the seller, “Is the manufacturer accredited?” We buy all kinds of things, even…
The Decline (and Fall?) of College
“A majority of Americans don’t think a college degree is worth the cost,” wrote Wall Street Journal reporter Douglas Belkin in late March. That revelation was inspired by the results…
A Collegiate Renaissance?
Intelligent observers of American higher education know that colleges generally are in great trouble: falling enrollments, declining public and political support, often dubious outcomes, and excessive tuition and other costs.…
Higher Education and the Law of Diminishing Returns, Part II
Recently, I argued in a Martin Center article that the fourth year of study for the bachelor’s degree is probably relatively unproductive and that enormous resources could be saved by…
Higher Education and the Law of Diminishing Returns
Early in the introductory college economics course, instructors talk about the Law of Diminishing Returns. An illustration: A farmer has a 100-acre field on which he wants to harvest wheat.…
American Colleges Are Committing Suicide
The evidence is everywhere: American colleges and universities are dying. Not all will die very soon—indeed, probably only a modest portion will. But the trend is unmistakably downward. Why? Is…
Who Should Own the University of North Carolina?
As a college professor from the Midwest, I usually shy away from commenting on higher-education policy issues in other parts of the country. But North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s November…